April 25, 2012
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THIS WEEK: The University of Iowa men’s tennis team will compete in the 2012 Big Ten Tournament this week in Evanston, Ill. The 12th-seeded Hawkeyes (1-21, 0-11) will face fifth-seeded Indiana in the opening round Thursday at 9:30 a.m. Matches will be played at the Vandy Christie Tennis Center.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT: Indiana (21-8, 7-4) is ranked 27th by the ITA. The Hoosiers closed the regular season on a five-match winning streak. Indiana has one ranked singles player and one ranked doubles team.
VASOS VICTORY HIGHLIGHTS SENIOR DAY: In his last match at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex, senior Will Vasos earned a comeback No. 2 singles victory. Vasos defeated Minnesota’s nationally ranked Leandro Toledo, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, to close the regular season. Vasos has 133 career victories. No. 35 Minnesota won the match, 6-1.
DUNN AND SWANK ON HOT STREAK: Junior Garret Dunn and sophomore Michael Swank defeated another ranked doubles team, winning the No. 1 doubles match against Minnesota. Dunn and Swank defeated No. 33 Rok Bonin and Julian Dehn, 9-8. Dunn and Swank have defeated top-33 doubles teams in two of Iowa’s last three matches, and have won eight matches at the No. 1 position this season.
HAWKEYES HONOR FOUR SENIORS: Iowa honored its four seniors in the final match of the season as Vasos, Mitch Beckert, Tom Mroziewicz and Christopher Speer competed for the last time at home.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE: The Hawkeyes competed against 14 nationally ranked teams in the regular season, and finished the season by playing 13 of their last 15 matches against ranked teams.
REGULAR SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: Dunn provided Iowa with solid singles play all season, collecting a team-high 10 victories. The Tempe, Ariz. native, has a 10-10 record this season. Matt Hagan became the first freshman since Tyler Cleveland in 1998 to win a Big Ten No. 1 singles match. Dunn and Swank led the Hawkeyes in doubles play with eight wins, while Hagan and Vasos had seven. Five Hawkeyes played their first collegiate dual singles match this season.
HEAD COACH Steve Houghton: Steve Houghton, the dean of Big Ten tennis coaches, is in his 31st year as head coach of the Hawkeyes. He has compiled a career record of 332-360 (.484), recording the most wins of any coach in Iowa men’s tennis history. Houghton recorded his 300th win at Indiana State Feb. 6, 2009. He became the winningest coach in Iowa tennis history in 1992 and is a member of the Iowa Tennis Hall of Fame